GREENVILLE — Noah Roberts saw a seam in the defense. Like any veteran would do, he made a swift move, eluded the opposition, and dashed toward the end zone.
Thirty, 20, 10, 5 — touchdown.
Roberts, an 8-year-old from Wilmington, won’t be suiting up for East Carolina on Saturdays. But, for one day, he made the big play.
In 2010, Roberts was diagnosed with neurofibromatosis, a genetic disease in which patients develop multiple soft tumors, according to medical-dictionary.com. He’s had two tumors removed from his brain and one from his spinal cord.
Roberts, in third grade, scampered to the end zone for the final score in the Pirates’ annual Purple-Gold spring football game on Saturday at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
Roberts was awarded the game ball and then lifted on the shoulders of the Pirates’ football team as if he had won the national championship.
ECU strength and conditioning coach Jeff Connors brought Roberts to a practice last season.
It was an instant connection.
“Noah is special to us,” ECU coach Ruffin McNeill said. “We’ve had Noah as a part of our team for the past two years. You can see how the kids reacted to Noah, so that tells you what he means to us.
“He has a great mom, a great dad and a great family. They are Pirates and they are a part of our team.”
With former Pirates and current NFL players Vontae Leach, Linval Joseph and Dwayne Harris back in Greenville, the current ECU squad gave the fans in attendance a sample of what to look forward to when August rolls around.
Quarterback Shane Carden, who passed for 3,116 yards last season, shared time under center with Cody Keith, Kurt Benkert and Ethan Long.
Carden completed 14 of his 22 passes from 137 yards and a touchdown to Lance Ray. Keith threw for 104 yards, including a 32-yard touchdown pass to Antonio Cannon.
“We have a lot of good receivers and a lot of good athletes,” Carden said. “All the quarterback has to do is spread the ball around and let them make plays.
“We’ve had a whole offseason together now, so we have to keep getting our timing down and getting better with these guys.”
Havelock native Danny Webster Jr. snagged a game-high eight passes for 93 yards. Justin Jones corralled five receptions for 47 yards and Cannon added three catches for 40 yards.
“I think the spring has gone pretty well for us,” Webster said. “We had a couple mistakes here and there and a couple penalties.
“We have a talented team and the chemistry is getting there. The offense is rolling right now.”
Playing without the top two running backs, Cory Hunter racked up 61 rushing yards on 15 carries and a touchdown.
The Pirates’ defense, led by new coordinator Rick Smith, showed signs of potential.
Chip Thompson picked off a pass from Carden. The Pirates had three sacks and blocked a field goal.
“I think they’ve come along fine,” McNeill said. “Rick is steady in installing his package and belief. The young men have adapted to Rick.
“Rick is demanding a lot from them. He will keep developing them.”
East Carolina, coming off an 8-5 season, will open fall practice on Aug. 1. The Pirates host Old Dominion in the season-opener on Aug. 31.
Notes: The announced attendance was 6,294. … Defensive end Lee Pegues ran the football on a fake punt. … Running back Vintavious Cooper, ECU’s 1,000-yard rusher from a year ago, missed the spring game while serving a suspension. … Chris Hairston, listed on the spring depth chart as a back-up running back, was out with an arm injury. Also out were wide receiver Chris Cacciola, defensive end Justin Dixon, safety Damon Magazu, defensive end Matt Milner and running back Jamal Tillman. All were held out because of injuries.
Adam Thompson can be reached at 252-635-5669 or at Adam.Thompson@newbernsj.com. Follow Adam on Twitter: @Adam_matic.